ONLINE business platform operator Alibaba is eyeing more acquisitions and partnerships to expand its user base.

"Our priority will be to further boost the online wholesale platform AliExpress.com," Chief Executive David Wei said during a conference call on Tuesday, without giving details about the acquisition targets.

The company scored 363 million yuan (US$53 million) in profit in the second quarter of this year, up 46 percent from a year ago, it said in a statement. Revenue jumped 49 percent to 2.59 billion yuan. The number of paying members rose to 34.1 percent to 712,869 by the end of June.

"We will remain focused on customers and on offering relevant value-added services and will continue to build our membership base by enhancing our product offerings," Wei said. "We are cautious on the global economy and development of small and medium enterprises in China but e-commerce will be an irreversible trend to create business opportunities."

In June, Alibaba announced it will acquire Vendio, a US-based multi-channel online sales operator for small and medium-sized merchants.

The company hopes to link small business owners in the United States through Vendio to its wholesale platform and is looking to attract more paying members in China, India and Turkey.

The company aims to have 1 million paying customers in China's marketplace within three years.

Credit Suisse yesterday downgraded Alibaba's shares from "outperform" to "neutral" on assumption that a deterioration in the economic situation will likely reduce the number of new paying members and operating expenses may also increase.